Covid-19: Beijing faces twin variant threat, cases rise

BEIJING: China’s highly guarded capital is seeing signs of further coronavirus spread, with new cases of both the Omicron and Delta variants found less than three weeks before the Winter Olympic Games.

Beijing’s first Omicron patient has passed the virus to at least two close contacts, according to the health commission. Separately, a person in a different part of the capital tested preliminary positive for Delta, city spokesperson Xu Hejian said at a briefing on Tuesday.

The infections come despite aggressive measures aimed at preventing an incursion into Beijing and a vow from Chinese officials to eradicate the virus by all means, including multiple rounds of mass testing, aggressive contact tracing, quarantine and lockdowns.

The flareup has also dulled the outlook for the Olympics that are due to start on February 4 and were seen as an opportunity to showcase China’s economy and governance. Organisers have halted ticket sales to the general public and will instead invite select groups of spectators to attend, provided they obey strict virus precautions.

Beijing is facing “dual pressure” from imported infections and a local spread, Xu said. “The new cases are once again reminding us of the complexity, arduousness, and challenges of epidemic prevention and control. All departments must be prepared for emergency response and strict guard against the virus by all means.”

Hong Kong authorities said Tuesday that they will kill about 2,000 small animals, including hamsters, after several tested positive for the coronavirus at a pet store where an employee was also infected.

4th jab partially effective against Omicron: Study

Israel will continue to offer a fourth vaccine shot despite preliminary findings that it is not enough to prevent Omicron infections, a senior health official said on Tuesday, predicting contagions stoked by the variant will wane in a week.

A preliminary study published by Israel’s Sheba Medical Center on Monday found that the fourth shot increases antibodies to even higher levels than the third but “probably” not enough to fend off the highly transmissible Omicron.

Meanwhile, Australia reported a record high of Covid-19 deaths on Tuesday, and its second-largest state declared an emergency in hospitals to cope with surging patient admissions and a staffing shortage due to the virus. The 74 deaths occurred in its three most populous states. New South Wales reported 36, Victoria reported 22 and Queensland 16. The previous daily record was 59 deaths on September 4, 2020.